2019 Alumni

In 2019, FYLPRO selected its eighth cohort, a group of fourteen talented, Filipino American young leaders from across the United States and Guam.

See below for their profiles:

Eileen Agahan Igcacenza

Barrigada, Guam

Born and raised on the beautiful island of Guam, Eileen Agahan Igcasenza currently serves as executive director of the Guam Women’s Chamber of Commerce while actively practicing commercial and residential real estate. She earned both a bachelor’s and master’s degree in business administration from the University of Guam where she participated in a number of local economic development projects, including the Guam Enterprise Initiative (One Village One Product) and Buy Local Guam.

Eileen has always pursued opportunities to aid her local community. She served as president of the University of Guam Alumni Association and Rotary-sponsored service leadership organization, Rotaract Club of the Marianas, where she led members to help raise funds for Typhoon Haiyan relief efforts in Manila. Rotaract was able to purchase relief goods and medium-sized boats for fishermen to regain their livelihood and continue supporting their families.

As a result of her career and service achievements, Eileen was recognized in 2014 as one of Guam Business Magazine’s 40 leading professionals under the age of 40, nominated for the Filipino Community of Guam’s Gawad Ulirang Pilipino Award for Corporate, Economic and Entrepreneurial Leadership in 2015, and received the Gawad Ulirang Pilipino Award for Family Volunteerism with her mother in 2016.


Sergio Alcubilla III

Honolulu, HI

LinkedIn 

Sergio Alcubilla serves as Staff Attorney for the Legal Aid Society of Hawaii and focuses his work on improving access to justice and increasing resources for Legal Aid's clients. Sergio helped implement Hawaii’s court based self-help centers and continues to oversee the firm's technology driven initiatives. He serves on various committees of the Hawaii Access to Justice Commission, is a Board Director of the Hawaii Filipino Lawyers Association, and is a Hawaii State Bar Association Leadership Institute Fellow. He is currently part of the Hawaii team working on the Legal Navigator platform, a collaborative project of the Microsoft Corporation, LSC, Pro Bono Net, and the Pew Charitable Trusts to develop statewide legal access portals that simplify the process of finding legal help. Sergio is a graduate of the University of Hawaii William S. Richardson School of Law, the Unification Theological Seminary, and the University of Florida.

Krystle Canare

Arlington, VA

LinkedIn

Krystle is a strong advocate for mental health and addressing disparities experienced by underserved and under-represented communities. Krystle is currently a full-time Program Specialist for Georgetown University’s Center for Child and Human Development where she coordinates the day-to-day operations of the Center of Excellence for Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation. Prior to working at Georgetown, Krystle worked as a senior project coordinator for the National Council for Behavioral Health and consultant for the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration. Krystle has served as an Ambassador for the White House Initiative on Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders during the Obama Administration, Steering Committee Member for the National Network to Eliminate Disparities in Behavioral Health, and currently serves as a Vice President for the Asian Mental Health Collective and Health Equity Ambassador for the American Psychological Association.

Krystle's mental health advocacy and non-profit leadership expands to the Filipino American community as COVID-19 Task Force Fellowship Director for the Filipino Young Leaders Program (FYLPRO), Advisor to the Filipino Intercollegiate Networking Dialogue, Inc's (FIND, Inc) Alumni Network, and Coach for the National Federation of Filipino American Association's Empowering Pilipino Youth through Collaboration (NaFFAA EPYC) program. She is the former Region Chair for NaFFAA's Capital Region, Board Director for FYLPRO, and President of the Philippine American Foundation for Charities, Inc.

Raised in the Washington D.C metropolitan area, Krystle graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park with a B.S in Neurobiology & Physiology. Krystle attributes her passion for community building to the university’s Filipino American History & Biography course, Multicultural Involvement & Community Advocacy Office, and the Filipino Cultural Association.


Fred Docdocil

Carson, CA

LinkedIn 

 

A Planning Commissioner for the City of Carson, CA, Frederick Alain Docdocil is an active member of multiple Filipino American organizations, including the Filipino Community of Carson (FCC), the UCI FilAm Alumni Chapter, and the National Federation of FilAm Associations (NaFFAA), in addition to having been a Public Relations Commissioner for the City of Carson, CA. A passionate community leader, Fred is the President of the Philippine Independence Day Foundation, Inc. (PIDF); a Founding Board Member and President Emeritus of the FilAm Chamber of Commerce of SouthBay LA Area (FACC-SLAA); the Vice President of Kagay-anons of SoCal (KSC); the Treasurer of the Filipino Young Leaders Program (FYLPRO); a Household Head & Speaker for Couples for Christ (CfC), and an Executive Board Member for the Coalition of FilAm Chambers of Commerce, Inc, (COFACC).

Professionally, Fred is the Mabuhay Branch and Business Development Coordinator for Mabuhay Credit Union, which is among the very first full-service Financial Institutions to specifically serve the FilAm and greater Community in Southern California and beyond with their financial services needs.

In addition to having been a proud recipient of the Top Outstanding Pilipino (TOP) award for Community Leadership, Fred has also been among the awardees for Outstanding Filipino Americans in the USA.

 


Everett Icao

Chicago, IL

LinkedIn 

Everett Icao is a 2016 graduate of Loyola University Chicago with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and International Studies with a minor in Psychology. An active volunteer in the Filipino-American community, Everett strongly believes and advocates for change in issues of social and economic injustice, community collaboration, and youth leadership engagement. He has served in several leadership capacities through organizations such as The Philippine-American Cultural Foundation, Filipino-American National Historical Society Chicago and Knights of Rizal just to name a few.

In his professional life, he is employed at Cooney & Conway, a plaintiff’s personal injury firm based in Chicago that proudly serves clients who seek assistance when finding themselves at the most vulnerable time of their lives. He continues to grow by aspiring to complete his legal education and one day represent those who need an advocate. Everett continually strives to build strong and positive relationships through his work in his professional and community organizing by involving people from different groups, ages, and backgrounds by emphasizing the importance of educating, engaging, and empowering so change can be met with action. In his free time, Everett enjoys spending his time outdoors and participating in various physically healthy activities.


Joyce Roldan King

Frederick, MD

LinkedIn 

 

Joyce King is a proud Filipino American, born and raised in New Jersey, who currently resides in Maryland. She is the Chief Counsel at the Frederick County State’s Attorney’s Office. She leads the Frederick County Cybercrimes Task Force, serves on the Maryland Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, and is cross-designated as a Special Assistant United States Attorney through the Department of Justice. In addition to prosecution, Joyce manages operations and communications for the State’s Attorney’s Office, provides legal counsel for multi-agency criminal justice policy initiatives and projects, and serves on the Legislative Committee for the Maryland State’s Attorney Association.

This past year, Joyce assisted in expanding Maryland laws on possession of child pornography. She hopes to bring this passion and leadership to produce meaningful change and progress to combat the sexual exploitation of children in the Philippines. Joyce is an alumna of George Washington University, American University: Women & Politics Institute, and the David A. Clarke School of Law.



Bernadette Lim 

Berkeley, CA

LinkedIn 

 

Bernadette is a community activist, healer and daughter of Filipinx and Toisanese immigrants. She is the founder and director of the Freedom Community Clinic – a grassroots initiative that imagines and works towards a Healing Feature that uplifts community-centered healing for the bodies, minds, and souls of underestimated communities. By providing free whole-person healing services combining the strengths of Western medicine and ancestral/holistic healing, they have helped 2,300+ people in the Bay Area and beyond, with a particular focus on Black, Indigenous and People of Color communities. Bernadette is also the co-founder of the Institute for Healing and Justice in Medicine, the creator and host of the Woke WOC Docs podcast, and the founder of the Freedom School for Intersectional Medicine and Health Justice.

By day, Bernadette is a medical student at UCSF School of Medicine. She recently earned her Master’s at UC Berkeley School of Public Health through the UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program. She graduated from Harvard University in 2016 with cum laude honors, and went on to be a Fulbright-Nehru Scholar in India. Bernadette is also a meditation/hatha yoga teacher.

Bernadette will continue to expand whole-person healing for under-resourced communities through holistic healing and primary care. She envisions and works towards a world where each person is affirmed, loved and cared for.


Antonio Moya 

Los Angeles, CA

LinkedIn 

 

Antonio Moya, M.D., M.P.H. is a neurologist and UCLA National Clinician Scholar. A physician of the Los Angeles Department of Health Services at Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center, he cares for underserved patients. Through his community partner, the Filipino American Service Group Inc. (FASGI) in LA's Historic Filipinotown, Antonio leads a community-based participatory research project to promote healthy behaviors through media among Filipino Americans with a focus on emergency stroke care. He also is in collaboration to develop a national network of young Filipino American physicians in the U.S. with an emphasis on educational pipeline programs.

Dr. Moya completed his neurology residency at New York - Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. After receiving his Bachelor of Science degree in neuroscience at UCLA, he traveled to the Philippines on a Fulbright Fellowship with a focus on telemedicine and acute stroke units. He completed his medical school training at UCSF as a PRIME-US Scholar, master’s of public health training from the Harvard School of Public Health, and has pursued his research interests in stroke and public health throughout both residency and fellowship.

Dr. Moya is particularly interested in improving health systems in resource-poor areas of the United States, the Philippines, and other Asian countries. He continues to advocate for improved physical and mental health for Asian and Pacific Islander immigrants and their communities in the U.S. and the Philippines. Antonio is also passionate about music, learning languages, and storytelling as powerful tools for healing.


Rizza O'Connor

Vidalia, GA

LinkedIn

 

Rizza O'Connor is the Chief Magistrate Judge of Toombs County and the first Filipina Judge in Georgia. 

 


TJ Simba-Medel

Bridgewater, AR

Resume

Timothy “TJ” Simba-Medel holds a BA in Theater Arts from the University of Arkansas in Little Rock. He is a professional performing artist, creative consultant, and arts educator with pedagogical methods rooted in the art of Spoken Word (2006 New Jersey Youth Slam Team in HBO’s Brave New Voices, 2008 New York Knicks Poetry Slam Top Finalist, and the 2009 Southern Fried “King of the South” Individual Poetry Slam Champion). 

As a 2015 Second City Chicago Bob Curry Fellow, he has become the living embodiment of his ancestors’ wildest dreams. He has understudied Second City Main Stages (A Red Line Runs Through It) and holds stand-up credits in the NBC Breakout Comedy Festival, CBS’s Diversity Showcase, and was a Featured Poet in Fifth Star Honors: A Night Dedicated to the Artists of Chicago at Pritzker Pavillion on behalf of Mayor Rahm Emmanuel. His television credits include a guest spot in EMPIRE on FOX and a special guest spot on CNNPhilippines in promotion of Manila Improv Festival in 2017.

TJ was the first Filipino-American Diversity and Inclusion Facilitator for Second City’s Business to Business Department SCWorks, was awarded the Jim Zulevic Award for Community Excellence and became the first Filipino-American faculty member of The Second City Training Center as well as the first Filipino-American faculty member of the historical Annoyance Theater and iO Improv Olympic Theater. In 2016, TJ co-founded and served as Artistic Director of the World Famous Improvised-Spoken Word Collective PREACH, where he has performed at festivals and taught workshops with universities and theaters across the US and in the Philippines. 

He continues to use his platform to serve and advance underserved communities as a creative consultant to community organizations including but not limited to: the Filipino Young Leaders Program (FYLPRO) as Board Member and COVID-19 Task Force Member, the National Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA), the Philippine Embassy in Washington D.C, and the Philippine American Foundation for Charities (PAFC). His most recent collaboration, in partnership with TaxWhiz Mon Abrea and the Asian Consulting Group, resulted in the release of the TaxWhiz App – a mobile all-in-one application tailored for the Philippine market to make taxes easily understandable, accessible, and convenient to do on the go.

At the heart of TJ’s creative profession is being a teaching artist. While in Chicago he was a teaching artist for the American Theater Company, Mudlark Children’s Theater Company, The Poetry Center of Chicago, Chicago Improv Productions, Silk Road Rising Theater, Theater Unspeakable, and collaborate with After School Matters on numerous programs and events geared towards Youth Advocacy and Mentorship. In his return to Arkansas, he has collaborated with UALR’S Children’s International Program and became the first Filipino faculty member for The Arkansas Repertory Theater.


Philjay Solar

Boston, MA

LinkedIn

Philjay Solar currently serves as the Commissioner of the Asian American Commission for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts where he sits as Secretary and Chair of the AAPI Young Leaders Symposium. He also is the youngest and only Commissioner of Filipinx descent. He is the son of Ilocano immigrants and was raised in Massachusetts where he obtained his Bachelor's degree from Lasell University and Juris Doctor degree from New England Law | Boston where he was the President of the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association and Executive Treasurer of the Student Bar Association. Philjay previously served with the AmeriCorps program, City Year, to bridge the educational gap and end the school to prison pipeline. He is also the founder of Fil-Lennials of New England which highlights young Filipinx-American professionals to inspire youth and build a stronger Fil-Am community.

Philjay currently sits on the Board of Directors for the Philippine American Mainstream Advocacy for Non-Partisan Associations, Inc. (PAMANA) where he has contributed to their annual Philippine Independence Day celebrations and Filipinx-American High School Leadership Workshop.

Additionally, Philjay serves as Massachusetts Vice Chair and EPYC Coach for the National Federation of Filipino-American Associations (NaFFAA), volunteers for the Massachusetts Youth Leadership Foundation, and was recently appointed to his hometown's Human Rights Commission. Philjay aspires to develop the next generation of young Filipinx-Americans leaders and lives by the saying, "Be the change you want to see in the world”.


Leezel Tanglao

New York, NY

LinkedIn 

Leezel Tanglao is a bridge journalist at the intersection of editorial, product, business development and sales. She currently leads membership and innovation at HuffPost. She consults with companies through her company, StatFury. Leezel's other previous stints include: Associated Press, CNN, CBSNews.com, VICE News, NowThis, ABCNews.com, KCBS/KCAL and Press-Enterprise. She is a 2019 Filipino Young Leaders Program delegate and currently sits on the FYLPRO Board of Directors and is the Chair of the FYLPRO COVID19 task force. She’s the project director and spokesperson for the Caretaker Project’s Tayo help desk. If you’re wondering how to say her name, it’s pronounced LEE-ZEL (not Liesel from the “Sound of Music”). 

Earl Valencia

San Francisco, CA

LinkedIn

Earl Valencia is a venture advisor for start-ups and corporate innovation teams where he focuses on growing companies or emerging business units from seed to scale. Based in San Francisco, he is currently a Managing Director for Digital Transformation for a Fortune 500 bank and Co-founder of Cognity Labs, one of the first virtual startup accelerators connecting emerging markets and Silicon Valley tech diaspora. He was part of the Advanced Engineering team for Dell EMC and previously was the Program Manager for Corporate Data at Bridgewater Associates, the world's largest hedge fund.

Mr. Valencia was a Business Incubation Manager at Cisco’s Emerging Technologies Group, a Senior Systems Engineer at Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems in Los Angeles, and worked in VC firms H&Q Asia Pacific in Manila as well as Investor Growth Capital in Menlo Park. He is a member of the Science and Technology Advisory Council and co-founded both QBO and IdeaSpace Foundation, in his passion to contribute to the Philippine start-up ecosystem.

Earl obtained a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Summa Cum Laude, from Boston University, a master’s degree in Systems Engineering from Cornell University and a M.B.A. from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Kevin Zagala

Redwood City, CA

LinkedIn 

Bay Area born and raised, Kevin Zagala has seen first-hand the significant impact technology can have on society at a local, state, national and international level, which spurred his interest to pursue a career in the field. As a ten-year veteran of the industry, he is currently a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer at Reputation.com, and has worked at numerous companies throughout the technology sector such as Life360 and Zynga.

Mr. Zagala is also the CEO and Project Lead of the mobile app Bay Area Casual Carpoolers, known as BACC. Despite the challenges of developing a start-up in a crowded marketplace, BACC has a gained a small, but growing market share and is rising in registered users through the efforts of a dedicated grassroots, word-of-mouth community of daily active users despite minimal marketing spend. Kevin graduated summa cum laude from UMT Arlington Virginia and is a member of the Delta Epsilon Tau Honor Society. In his free time, he enjoys playing basketball, video games, reading and spending time with his family.